I really love the 3D-printing services you provide. It has made me think about design and tinkering in a whole different way.

As an Industrial Designer, I also use Shapeways for business related jobs but some of my clients are complaining that production time is too long.

For example I am designing a hinge that needs to be finished for a presentation in two weeks. I may just barely make it in time and I had to choose the WSF option instead of the intended steel version. Bummer.

I would really like some sort of rush service available. If I could at a premium (example: +50% startup fee) and have it printed ASAP (example: 3 business days) it would be awesome.

I don't know how your logistics work but it should be possible to do so and you could make more money/make more people happy.